Cross Country

Kind of a crazy day in Luhm?hlen. Arthur warmed up fantastically and went out on course making easy work of everything. The course rode very well for most people. The two fences that seemed to worry people were the coffin and the combination in the main arena. The coffin required turning after the A element to put yourself on the line to jump the direct route out over the narrow arrowhead. I was comfortable with the direct route as Arthur holds the line to skinnies quite well. When I walked the course with Anne she thought it was what she considered a “50/50 jump” meaning even with a good ride on a good horse it was 50/50 if the horse would actually see it and jump it. Eventhough I was very comfortable with the direct route my job was to come here and jump around clean. I decided to go the long route to ensure a clean trip around. He jumped through everything beautifully! There were a couple of massive jumps that he just skipped over. Our major hiccup on the course was when we were galloping down a very narrow lane about 2/3 of the way around the course just before going into the main arena. We bumped into the spectator rope (there were no spectators on that side of the rope) which paniced him and sent him through it harder. We pulled up a bit of rope and stakes and once I got him back on track he seemed fine albeit a bit flustered from the incident. In the main arena the question was a very forward two stride over two massive brush oxers then a very tight turn to a corner. A number of people ended up on too big of a step after the brush oxers ( me included) to safely make the turn, which then required you to swing around to. Jump the corner the opposite way ( the long route). No big deal, quick reactions neccesary for xc riding. He then finished the course very well. He pulled up with plenty of run left in him… Always a good feeling. We noticed that he had a hematoma above his right knee on the inside of his forearm which we got ice on right away. He walked comfortably back to the barn. The hematoma got bigger and began to move down the leg and become very painful for him. I had to make the incredibly tough decision to withdraw him from the competition. There was a small hope that this would all resolve by sunday for showjumping, but the very best thing i could do for the horse was to give him anti-inflamatories and manage his pain. My horse’s wellfare always comes first. We have been incredibly aggressive about ice and pressure. It’s currently 3:45 in the morning here and I have just checked him again. He seems happy enough but I hate him not feeling his normal self. Hopefully a lot will change for the better in the next day.